AEWA News

An AEWA Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop on the flyway approach to the conservation and wise use of waterbirds and wetlands took place from 6 to 10 May in Benin. The workshop was jointly organized by the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat and the Directorate General of Water, Forests and Hunting (DGEFC) of Benin, in cooperation with the Ramsar Secretariat and the Wadden Sea Flyway Initiative (WSFI). It was made possible thanks to generous financial and in-kind support from the Government of Benin and the European Commission’s Global Public Goods and Challenges (GPGC) Thematic Programme Strategic Cooperation Agreement (SCA) with UN Environment and the WSFI.

Under the theme “Protect Birds: Be the Solution to Plastic Pollution” the 2019 World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) campaign was a record-breaking celebration and a great success. As the main organizers behind WMBD, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) and the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) Secretariats, with their partner Environment for the Americas (EFTA), are pleased to share a few of the many highlights of the campaign.

Every year, World Migratory Bird Day presents an annual theme aiming to raise awareness of issues affecting migratory birds and to inspire people and organizations around the world to take measures for their conservation. This year’s theme − “Protect Birds: Be the Solution to Plastic Pollution!” − will put the spotlight on the negative impact of plastic pollution on migratory birds and their habitats.

Dr. Nikolai Petkov of the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) is one of this year’s winners of the prestigious awards granted by the Whitley Fund for Nature to local conservation leaders. Also called ‘Green Oscars’, these high-profile awards provide various types of grants to enable conservationists to scale up their vital work and make a real and measurable difference to wildlife and local communities.

The 15th Meeting of the AEWA Technical Committee took place from 9 to 11 April at the UN Premises in Bonn, Germany. This was the first meeting of the AEWA Technical Committee since the 7th Session of the Meeting of the Parties to AEWA, which was held in Durban, South Africa in December 2018 as well as the first meeting in the implementation period of the Strategic Plan 2019-2027. The Technical Committee provides the scientific advice and expertise which is essential for the implementation of the Agreement.

The Circumpolar Seabird Expert Group (CBird) under the Arctic Council Working Group for the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) came together for its annual meeting at the CAFF Secretariat offices in Akureyri, Iceland from 26 to 29 March 2019. CBird promotes, facilitates, and coordinates conservation, management and research activities among circumpolar countries and improves communication between seabird scientists and managers inside and outside the Arctic. The group consists of national representatives, Permanent Participants , observer countries and organizations.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the EU Birds Directive (Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds), which has been a crucial cornerstone for the protection of birds within Europe and has acted as the basis for much of the environmental policy developed within the EU. Adopted on 2 April 1979 (and amended in 2009) it is – in fact, one of the oldest pieces of EU legislation on the environment.

The second meeting of the European Goose Management Platform’s International Modelling Consortium successfully took place from 21 to 22 March 2019, in Kalø, Denmark. The Consortium, which is coordinated by the EGMP Data Centre at Aarhus University, is collaborating on the development of goose population models. The first meeting, was also held in Kalø in January last year.

The 15th Meeting of the AEWA Technical Committee is scheduled to take place in Bonn 9-11 April, the first time since last year’s 7th Session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP7) in Durban, South Africa. As well as taking reports form the Secretariat and Regional Representatives, the Technical Committee will be electing its officers for the period 2019-2021, including a replacement for the outgoing Chair, Dr Saulius Svazas of Lithuania, who stepped down at MOP7 after concluding his two terms as member of the Committee.

The staff at the AEWA Secretariat were shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Dr Lew Young, the Chief Executive of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP). Lew, who was 60 years old, died yesterday of a heart attack while attending a meeting in Beijing. Lew was a passionate conservationist and a good ally to both AEWA and CMS and he was a strong advocate of the EAAFP participating fully in the World Migratory Bird Day campaign. He will be sorely missed.